The present invention relates in general to packing machines, and more particularly to machines for automatically packing bottles, cans or similar containers in predetermined positions in wooden or cardboard cartons.
Automatic in-line type packing machines have come into wide use for high-speed packing of bottles and other containers in compartmentized or non-compartmentized cartons. Such machines generally utilize a conveyor belt to advance the containers to be packed in side-by-side rows to a packing station, wherein they are aligned in a precise grid pattern and dropped as a group into a carton positioned below. While a conventional conveyor belt can be used to advance the containers prior to packing, the line pressure exerted on the containers being positioned for packing by the trailing containers on the conveyor belt can result in undesirable distortion or jamming, or even breakage, of odd-shaped, flexible or thin-walled containers, making the precise grid pattern alignment required in the packing station for precision high-speed packing difficult to consistently obtain.
One in-line packing machine particularly well adapted for packing flexible and odd-shaped bottles is the model RG case packer manufactured and marketed by Miller Hydro Company, the assignee of the present application. This machine incorporates in its packing station a container drop assembly which includes power driven drop bar assemblies under row of containers to advance the containers into their pre-packing positions independently of the pressure exerted by the conveyor on trailing containers. A container clamping station upline of the packing station effectively restrains the trailing containers in each row prior to their entering the packing station to prevent line pressure developed by the trailing containers from being applied to the containers as they are being aligned by the power driven drop bar assemblies. To release the containers from the packing station the drop bar assemblies are shifted to positions between the rows of containers so that the containers are free to drop into their respective positions in the carton positioned below. The present application is directed to improvements in the packing station, and more specifically to improvements in the container drop assembly and the means for supplying power thereto.
Accordingly, it is a general object of the present invention to provide a new and improved machine for automatically and efficiently packing containers in a case.
It is a more specific object of the present invention to provide a new and improved packing machine for packing containers in a case which provides faster and more accurate handling of odd-shaped and flexible containers.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved container drop assembly for use in the packing station of an automatic case packing machine.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved container drop assembly which can be more easily installed and removed from a case packing machine to allow the machine to more readily accommodate different sizes and shapes of containers.